By BOB NORBERG

A new generation of racing technology rolled onto Infineon Raceway Tuesday, where sleek, handcrafted motorcycles reached racetrack speeds while sounding no louder than a kitchen blender.

“Just a low whine,” said Kenyon Kluge of Santa Cruz, the owner and rider of K Squared Racing. “That is part of the resistance … people want the noise.”

The class is Time Trial Xtreme Grand Prix, or TTXGP, and the motorcycles are electric-powered and a new, loosely regulated international class that is racing for the first time in the United States this weekend.

“The challenge is still there, the rules are wide open,” said Jon Bunne of Milwaukee, Wisc., who is an engineer on the Zero Agni team. “It’s a breeding ground for innovation. There are as many different ideas here as there are people here.”

Ten teams will be racing in the new class Saturday as part of the Sonoma race track’s annual weekend of professional and traditional motorcycle racing, the first of four electric motorcycle races in the United States.

Source: PressDemocrat.com

LAS VEGAS, NV (May 7, 2010) – Drew Gosselaar and his Quantya “Track” electric motorcycle scored the top spot in the first ever AMA-sanctioned electric versus gas-powered dirt bike race, dubbed the Energy Crisiscross (ECX) at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, NV this past weekend. Gosselaar led an electric bike sweep of the top six spots, with the first gas-powered bike taking seventh. The rules for the Energy Crisiscross event restricted the modifications to the gas- powered bikes and required use of the stock frame, forks, cylinder, carburetor and engine cases.

Gosselaar, the fastest qualifier of the day, pulled the hole-shot and never looked back while on his way to the checkered flag. Drew and his Quantya “Track” also scored the fastest lap of the race. “Quantya gave me the best equipment possible,” said Gosselaar. “Even though they’re a new company, they’ve made an all around awesome machine. I was comfortable from the second I got on the bike. It just shows the potential of electric bikes and how easy they are to ride and even win major events.”

Source: Dirt Rider

Also here: AMA

Deliveries to begin in the summer.

Roehr Motorcycles has released more information about its line of electric sportbikes including two street models and a higher-spec racing version.

The Illinois-based manufacturer announced its entry in the electric motorcycle segment in January with two eRoehr models, the eSuperbike and the entry-level eSupersport. They will be joined by the Roehr’s new flagship electric sportbike, the eSuperbike RR which was designed to compete in the TTXGP and the FIM’s ePower racing series.

According to Roehr Motorcycle founder Walter Roehrich, development of the electric models had fallen behind, and the eSuperbike RR will not be ready for the start of the TTXGP series. Roehrich told Motorcycle.com there is a chance the eSuperbike RR would ener the TTXGP late in the season but 2011 would be more likely.

“The mechanical portion of the bikes are completed, we are in the testing and development process right now, both on the dyno and the street. We were planning to be a little further along by now, and were hoping to enter the TTXGP series, however a few delays, mainly with bodywork tooling have set us behind schedule a bit,” Roehrich wrote on the electric motorcycle forum ElMoto.net. “As much as we would have loved to compete at Infineon next week, our main priority is to finish our development, and deliver a refined quality product with confidence. Like the eSuperbike production model, the RR version will use twin AC induction motors with a claimed output of 96 hp and 210 ft-lb. of torque. The motor will run on a 96V lithium-iron-phosphate battery with a capacity of 9.6 kWh.”

Source: Motorcycle.com

K Squared Racing’s Zero S TTXGP BikeZero Motorcycle’s Electrical Engineer Kenyon Kluge was out at Thunder Hill Park Raceway testing his K Squared Racing Zero S last week. Kenyon decided to get in the TTXGP mix late and did a great job modifying the Zero S for race duty in a short amount of time. The K Squared S retains the stock rear wheel but the forks and front wheel are borrowed from a Suzuki GSXR1000. AfterShocks Suspension did the suspension work and is one of Kenyon’s sponsors. The battery charger was removed and more batteries were added for more energy and a higher pack voltage. The body work is from a 2007 GSXR600 with some metal work covering the battery pack expansion.

Read the whole thing at: PlugBike.com

If the inaugural TTXGP on the Isle of Man whetted your appetite for more electric motorcycle racing, you can look forward to lots of feasting in 2010. In addition to another stand-alone island race (this time with a 2 lap class replacing the open class) plans are afoot for a 3-continent, 5-race Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) sanctioned World Championship, as well as a 4-race UK national and a 3-race national American series. The 25-mile contests are likely to piggyback Endurance Championship and World Superbike Championship rounds as support events with the relationship starting at the Nürburgring edition of the 2009 World Superbike series in September from the 4th to 6th. Participants at that single-lap exhibition affair are said to include some of the Isle of Man teams as well as newcomers.

Speaking of newcomers, if you’re itching to get in on some of this racing action yourself, there are some exciting developments that may facilitate that. First, you can buy a £10,000 ($16,490) package based on the TTXGP-winning Agni motors bike that includes a motor, batteries, controller and electronics that you can integrate into your own chassis. If that option tickles your fancy, better contact the TTXGP folks soon as interest is said to be high. Fabricator fledgling? Word is that an as-yet-unnamed American company will be selling race-ready replicas of the Agni Motors bike for under $40,000. The first batch could be ready by February and consist of 40 examples. If your significant other is looking over your shoulder at the moment repeating, “No way, no how chickee-poo/mister-man” you can always scratch your racing itch by getting a copy of the just-released Isle of Man affair on DVD or Blue-Ray and settle back on the couch with some popcorn. Happy racing.

Source: Automotive Reviews